FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The No. 11 Nova Southeastern baseball team (22-6, 8-4 SSC), is set to take on the Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish (12-14-1) in a regional clash, for a three-game series in Jupiter, Fla. at the Roger Dean Complex. The series will begin Friday, March 28 at 6 p.m. and conclude with a doubleheader the next day, starting at 1 p.m.
This series will be the first of five games between the two sides.
The Sharks are coming off a six-day layoff, where they last swept their three-game series against Sunshine State Conference foe, Saint Leo, at the NSU Baseball Complex last weekend. The Sharks took game one, 5-3 behind a complete game from
Roberto Baroniel (Jr., Miami), who picked up his fifth win of the year. NSU recorded their highest scoring output of the season in the second game of the series, in a 22-3 win, before taking the third and final game, 4-2.
Alexander Fernandez (Jr., Davie, Fla.) picked up the NCBWA South Region Hitter of the Week and SSC Player of the Week for his outstanding performance last week. Fernandez finished the week hitting .600 (9-for-15), with seven RBI and four runs scored. More impressively, Fernandez slugged 1.067 with seven doubles—five doubles against Saint Leo. In game two against the Lions, Fernandez went 4-of-5 at the plate with four doubles, three RBI and three runs scored. The four doubles in a single game is the most by any player in the NCAA era for the NSU Sharks. Fernandez currently sits tied for third in the country, with 14 doubles.
The Sailfish enter the series with the Sharks after dropping three of their last four contests, including losing two of three to the SSC's Florida Southern Moccasins last weekend. Most recently, PBA lost a midweek battle against Montevallo this past Wednesday, 8-7 in 10 innings, after taking a 6-3 heading into the ninth.
The Sailfish are no strangers to SSC competition. PBA started their season with a single game against Lynn, losing 9-5. They then played Florida Tech in a three-game series in Melbourne, Fla., where they were swept by the Panthers, then again against Saint Leo on the road. PBA took on FIT for their fourth matchup of the year, where they beat the Panthers, 7-6, in a tight battle.
Chris Farrell has led the Sailfish offensively this season as one of the best hitters in the country. Farrell has a .430 batting average to go along with 26 RBI and nine doubles. Ryan Drew, who is second on the team in batting average at .406, has a team-high three home runs and a .623 slugging percentage.
The Sharks could face Alex Greener, PBA's Friday night pitcher, who's had his struggles to this point of the season. Greener (0-6) currently has an 8.44 ERA, with opposing batters hitting .352 off of him.
These two teams meet for the first time since last year, when they split the season series 2-2. The Sharks have had a great deal of success against the Sailfish, going 52-18-1 against PBA in the team's history.
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